Elko County, Nevada
Recorded hazard history: storm events since 1950, federal disaster declarations since 1953, flood insurance claims since 1978, and FEMA's risk index.
NCEI notes that Storm Data is compiled from a variety of sources including the National Weather Service, other federal, state and local agencies, the media and the public; that property and crop damage figures are estimates; and that some events are recorded by NWS forecast zone rather than by county. FEMA notes that NFIP claim records are redacted and aggregated to protect the privacy of policyholders. NCEI storm records through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA declarations refreshed 1 Oct 2026; NFIP claims as of 8 Sep 2026.
Between 1950 and 2026, NCEI recorded 343 storm events in Elko County, Nevada, led by damaging wind.
That is 2.0 events per 100 square miles, below the Nevada figure of 8.0, and 63.6 per 10,000 residents against 27.9 statewide.
1 event fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 0 deaths and 4 injuries to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $14M.
FEMA has designated the county in 19 federal disaster declarations since 1953; the most recent is Covid-19 Pandemic (major disaster, 4 Apr 2020).
National Flood Insurance Program policyholders in the county filed 31 claims since 1978, of which 18 were paid, totalling $142K (about $8K per paid claim). FEMA counts 97 residential flood policies in force.
FEMA's National Risk Index rates the county's overall risk as "Relatively Moderate" and its expected annual loss as "Relatively Moderate" ($75M a year across 18 hazards).
Compared with Nevada and the United States
| Measure | Elko County | Nevada | US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recorded events since 1950 | 343 | 8,761 | 1,977,440 |
| Events per 100 square miles | 2.0 | 8.0 | 56.0 |
| Events per 10,000 residents | 63.6 | 27.9 | 59.6 |
| Events in the last 12 months | 1 | 332 | 62,008 |
| Deaths recorded by NCEI | 0 | 990 | 26,435 |
| Property damage (NCEI estimates) | $14M | $1.1B | $575B |
| NFIP claims per 1,000 residents | 0.6 | 0.6 | 8.1 |
| Average paid NFIP claim | $8K | $37K | $43K |
| Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years | 15.5 | 3.8 | 16.1 |
County-recorded events plus zone-recorded events whose forecast zone is named for the county. State and US rows include events recorded only by forecast zone. Rates use 2021 Census population and land area.
Events by decade
Trend: 232 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 93 in the 20 years before. Reporting practice changed in 1996 and again with automated reports in the 2000s, so decade totals measure the record as much as the weather.
Events by type
Hazard pages exist for hail, tornado, flood, wind and winter where the county has at least 10 recorded events. "Other" covers heavy rain, debris flow, dust, funnel clouds and similar reports.
Largest recorded events
| Date | Event type | Group | Magnitude | Property damage | Crop damage | Deaths | Injuries | Geography |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 Jul 2015 | Dust Devil | Other | — | $1K | — | — | 4 | County |
| 26 May 2018 | Hail | Hail | 0.50 in | $5.0M | — | — | — | County |
| 7 Feb 2017 | Flood | Flood | — | $3.0M | — | — | — | County |
| 21 Jul 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Wind | 55 mph | $3.0M | — | — | — | County |
| 27 Apr 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Wind | 66 mph | $1.0M | — | — | — | County |
| 1 Aug 2021 | Flash Flood | Flood | — | $800K | — | — | — | County |
| 8 Feb 2017 | Flash Flood | Flood | — | $500K | — | — | — | County |
| 4 Jul 2018 | Dust Devil | Other | — | $500K | — | — | — | County |
| 19 Aug 1979 | Tornado | Tornado | F1 | $250K | — | — | — | County |
| 1 Aug 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Wind | 90 mph | $100K | — | — | — | County |
Ranked by deaths, then injuries, then NCEI's damage estimate. Deaths and injuries are NCEI counts (direct plus indirect); no personal details are recorded here.
Federal disaster declarations
| Declared | Number | Type | Incident | Title | Programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Apr 2020 | DR-4523 | Major disaster | Biological | Covid-19 Pandemic | Individual assistance, Public assistance |
| 13 Mar 2020 | EM-3443 | Emergency | Biological | Covid-19 | Public assistance |
| 17 Jul 2017 | FM-5191 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Oil Well Fire | Public assistance |
| 27 Mar 2017 | DR-4307 | Major disaster | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Mudslides | Public assistance |
| 3 Oct 2011 | FM-2972 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Indian Creek Fire | Public assistance |
| 23 Jul 2007 | FM-2717 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Murphy Fire Complex | Public assistance |
| 24 Aug 2006 | FM-2670 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Mudd Fire | Public assistance |
| 26 Jun 2006 | FM-2648 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Suzie Fire | Public assistance |
| 3 Feb 2006 | DR-1629 | Major disaster | Severe Storm | Severe Storms And Flooding | Public assistance |
| 13 Sep 2005 | EM-3243 | Emergency | Hurricane | Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Public assistance |
| 29 Aug 2005 | FM-2581 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Chance Fire | Public assistance |
| 22 Aug 2005 | FM-2578 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Vor-Mccarty Fire | Public assistance |
| 16 Jul 2005 | FM-2568 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Carlin Fire | Public assistance |
| 16 Jul 2005 | FM-2567 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Contact Fire | Public assistance |
| 23 Feb 2005 | EM-3204 | Emergency | Snowstorm | Snow | Public assistance |
| 17 Feb 2005 | EM-3202 | Emergency | Snowstorm | Record And/Or Near Record Snow | Public assistance |
| 5 Jul 2001 | FM-2366 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Nv - Ten Mile Fire - 07/05/2001 | Public assistance |
| 13 Jan 2000 | FM-2356 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Nv - Spring Creek Fire - 1999 | Public assistance |
| 11 Jun 1977 | EM-3041 | Emergency | Drought | Drought | Public assistance |
Declarations in which FEMA designated this county, from the OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2). DR: major disaster; EM: emergency; FM: fire management assistance. Programs show whether individual or public assistance was made available.
Flood insurance claims
| Year of loss | Claims | Paid claims | Amount paid | Average paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 15 | 11 | $113,942 | $10,358 |
| 2016 | 1 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 2015 | 1 | 1 | $2,766 | $2,766 |
| 2005 | 2 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 2002 | 1 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 1999 | 1 | 0 | $0 | — |
| 1995 | 3 | 1 | $2,815 | $2,815 |
| 1993 | 1 | 1 | $1,398 | $1,398 |
| 1990 | 2 | 2 | $4,063 | $2,031 |
| 1984 | 4 | 2 | $16,916 | $8,458 |
OpenFEMA NFIP claims (v3, as of 8 Sep 2026), aggregated by year of loss; amounts are building, contents and increased-cost-of-compliance payments as recorded. Repetitive-loss counts from the NFIP Multiple Loss Properties file (2 Aug 2026); policies in force from the NFIP Residential Penetration Rates file (3 Aug 2026).
National Risk Index
| Hazard (NRI) | Risk rating | Expected annual loss |
|---|---|---|
| Wildfire | $61,636,633 | |
| Inland flooding | $8,028,012 | |
| Earthquake | $2,708,139 | |
| Heat wave | $516,443 | |
| Avalanche | $502,359 | |
| Winter weather | $354,662 | |
| Cold wave | $278,257 | |
| Lightning | $262,838 | |
| Strong wind | $167,557 | |
| Hail | $78,637 | |
| Drought | $64,358 | |
| Landslide | $2,286 | |
| Tornado | $1,855 | |
| Volcanic activity | $0 |
FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 release. Ratings are FEMA's relative comparison of counties; expected annual loss is FEMA's modelled estimate of average yearly building, population and agriculture loss. See how to read the NRI.
Hurricane and tropical storm passes
No HURDAT2 track at tropical-storm strength passes within 100 miles of the county's centre point (through the 2025 season).
ZIP codes with flood claims
- 89801 25
ZIP codes whose NFIP claims carry this county's code, with the number of claims. Five or more claims are needed for a ZIP page to be indexed.
Questions and answers
How often does it hail in Elko County, NV?
NCEI records 55 hail events in Elko County since 1950, in 21 different years; that is about 0.7 recorded events a year. 2 reports were golf-ball size (1.75 in) or larger.
Has Elko County had a tornado?
Yes. NCEI records 23 tornadoes in Elko County since 1950, 0 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 0.
When was the last federal disaster declaration for Elko County?
4 Apr 2020: Covid-19 Pandemic, a major disaster declaration for biological. The county appears in 19 declarations since 1953.
How many flood insurance claims have been filed in Elko County, and how much was paid?
31 NFIP claims since 1978, 18 of them paid, for $142K in total. FEMA publishes these figures redacted and aggregated; individual properties are not identified.
Is Elko County in the National Risk Index's high-risk band?
FEMA's National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the county "Relatively Moderate" for overall risk, "Relatively Moderate" for expected annual loss, "Relatively Low" for social vulnerability and "Very Low" for community resilience. These ratings are FEMA's relative comparison across all US counties.
How does Elko County compare with the rest of Nevada?
2.0 recorded events per 100 square miles against 8.0 statewide, and 0.6 NFIP claims per 1,000 residents against 0.6. The comparison table on this page shows each measure beside the state and national figures.
Provenance
Storm events: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, yearly details files through 30 Jun 2026 (public domain). Declarations: OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2, refreshed 1 Oct 2026. Flood claims: OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 as of 8 Sep 2026; NfipMultipleLossProperties v1 (2 Aug 2026); NfipResidentialPenetrationRates v1 (3 Aug 2026). Risk index: FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025. Hurricane tracks: NHC HURDAT2 through 2025. Population and area: US Census Bureau, 2021 vintage. Built 1 Oct 2026; see the methodology and corrections pages. Hazard hubs: Hail · Tornado · Flood · Wind · Winter.